Ranking the Dallas Cowboys top 5 offseason moves
By Randy Gurzi
5. Bringing in Gerald McCoy and Dontari Poe
The Cowboys lost Maliek Collins this season in free agency and that was a blow for them. Collins was a third-round pick in 2016, which will surely go down as the best draft class this team has had in many years. An underrated player, Collins’ absence would have been felt had it not been for some savvy moves by the front office.
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After seeing Collins walk, the Cowboys were able to convince Gerald McCoy to sign on a three-year deal worth $18 million. For what McCoy brings to the table, this is an absolute steal. He’s a 10-year veteran who can generate pressure from the interior and has six Pro Bowl selections under his belt.
Dallas wasn’t done there either as they also brought in one of McCoy’s teammates in Carolina last season, Dontari Poe. For years, Dallas has neglected the one-technique but that’s no longer the case as Poe gives them a 346-pound nose tackle capable of holding his own in run support.
Like McCoy, he signed a team-friendly deal which makes the move even more impressive. Of course, Poe has seen his star lose some of its shine from early in his career. A former No. 11 overall pick in 2012, Poe was a beast for the Kansas City Chiefs but didn’t live up to expectations in Atlanta or Carolina.
It wasn’t that he was bad, but just didn’t make the splash plays that he became famous for with the Chiefs. In Dallas, that won’t be a problem since they’re not expecting him to anchor the line but to simply do his job as the early-down run-stuffer. In that role, he should be just fine.